Two men charged in police chase

Pursuit ended in head-on crash; no serious injuries.

Pursuit ended in head-on crash; no serious injuries.

October 24, 2006|ALICIA GALLEGOS Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- Two men have been charged after a recent police chase that ended when the fleeing vehicle crashed head-on into a pickup truck. No one was seriously injured in the Thursday night accident that began near Ironwood Road and Madison Street and ended violently in the 100 block of Twyckenham Drive. Driver Jay Pontius, 29, has been charged with resisting arrest by flight and remains at the St. Joseph County Jail on a bond of $1,050, including bonds for two additional warrants. Jessie Fitzgerald, 28, is being held on $250 bond for resisting and public intoxication. Police reports differ from at least one victim's account of how the pursuit began. Angela Harmer, 30, who was in the front passenger seat of the 1992 blue Mercury Grand Marquis, said Monday that she and her fiancé, Pontius, were driving with a third man, Shane Miller, when they picked up Fitzgerald, who needed a ride. When police stopped the car for reportedly driving erratically, Harmer said, her fiancé pulled over, but was forced to drive off when Fitzgerald put a gun to his head. The chase continued for several minutes, ending when the car slammed into a Chevy Silverado pickup driven by 50-year-old Michael Vissage of South Bend. Vissage suffered neck pain, but decided to obtain medical treatment on his own. Harmer said she suffered a broken ankle, cracked chest bone and broken teeth. Police reports indicate that stories from all parties involved changed multiple times, and both Miller and Fitzgerald were pointed out as the possible carjackers. A toy gun was later found in the back seat of the vehicle, police said, but it was unclear who, if anyone, had used it to manipulate the driver. Pontius had two warrants out for his arrest, one for criminal conversion and one for public intoxication, according to jail records. The vehicle also had false plates out of Texas, according to police.